"Novelty and Artistry in Blasco Ibáñez’s Cinematic La tierra de todos (1922)," by Christopher L. Anderson

Novelty and Artistry  in Blasco Ibáñez’s Cinematic La tierra de todos (1922), by Christopher L. Anderson. In La tierra de todos (1922), Blasco Ibáñez breaks ground in terms of themes and motifs, characters, narrative technique, and structure, very frequently in ways that indicate he was creating a new type of novel, the “novela cinematográfica,” with Hollywood in mind. But despite the significant influence of film in his novel, which includes panoramic views, tracking shots, and simultaneous scenes, for example, Blasco was not yet prepared to give up such film-averse items as flashbacks or detailed descriptions. In this novel novel, Blasco utilizes numerous narrative strategies, from the most objective panoramic views to the most subjective passages, which feature the author’s intrusive opinions and occasional insult-laden criticisms, especially of Parisian society in Chapters I-IV, where hypocrisy and unfaithfulness reign, and XIX-XX, with its presentation of prostitution. The narrati